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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. Which is the best interpretation of line 600, in which Venus is said "To clip Elysium and to lack her joy"?

2. To whom is the poem dedicated?

3. Which technique is used in lines 221 and 222, "And now she weeps, and now she fain would speak/ And now her sobs do her intendments break"?

4. To what does Venus compare her own lips when she says that Adonis's lips are "sweet seals in my soft lips imprinted" (line 511)?

5. What is Adonis being compared to when the speaker says he is "Like a dive-dapper" (86)?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Venus tell Adonis he can learn from his horse?

2. Explain the comparison made between Adonis's mouth and a "red morn" (line 453).

3. What happens when Adonis tries to get back on his horse and leave?

4. What is Venus's purpose in talking about her relationship with the god of war?

5. What does Venus tell Adonis would happen if their positions were reversed?

6. Explain the conceit that Venus uses when she compares herself to a park.

7. How does Adonis eventually end up kissing Venus?

8. How do Venus and Adonis end up on the ground together?

9. Explain the comparison the speaker makes between Adonis's horse and one created by an artist.

10. Throughout the passage, which participants in a trial is Venus compared to?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Narcissism is a motif that runs throughout Venus and Adonis. Where are there overt references to Narcissus, and where is narcissism merely implied? Does the poem seem to be characterizing both Venus and Adonis as narcissistic? What is the implication of the poem's narcissism motif? Write an essay in which you analyze where this motif occurs and what its significance is to the overall meaning of the poem. Support your arguments with both quoted and paraphrased evidence drawn from throughout the poem, and be sure to cite any quoted language in MLA format.

Essay Topic 2

How would you characterize the speaker of this poem? Is the speaker educated or uneducated? Confident or tentative? Emotional or reserved? Does the speaker seem to have kind intentions toward the characters, to identify with them, and express sincere sympathy--or does the speaker stand at a remove, passing judgment? How closely do you imagine this speaker's voice mimics the voice of the audience that Shakespeare is trying to reach with this poem? Write an essay in which you consider Shakespeare's purposes in writing Venus and Adonis and how these purposes might have influenced the voice of the poem's speaker. Support your arguments with both quoted and paraphrased evidence from throughout the poem, making sure to cite any quoted language and outside sources in MLA format.

Essay Topic 3

Venus's apostrophes to death are not the only apostrophes in the poem. Where else is this technique used in the poem? What impact do the apostrophes have on tone? How is the use of apostrophe related to the way that Helios, Mars, Diana, and other figures are referred to, as if they are nearby but not directly interacting with Venus or Adonis? Write an essay in which you make and defend a claim about the larger purpose of the poem's apostrophes. Support your arguments with both quoted and paraphrased evidence drawn from throughout the poem, and be sure to cite any quoted language in MLA format.

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